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| UK playwright Harold Pinter dies | UK playwright Harold Pinter dies |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter has died aged 78. | Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter has died aged 78. |
| Pinter, who died on Christmas Eve, had been suffering from liver cancer, it is understood. | Pinter, who died on Christmas Eve, had been suffering from liver cancer, it is understood. |
| Pinter wrote more than 30 plays including The Caretaker, The Homecoming and The Dumb Waiter. His film scripts include The French Lieutenant's Woman. | Pinter wrote more than 30 plays including The Caretaker, The Homecoming and The Dumb Waiter. His film scripts include The French Lieutenant's Woman. |
| His second wife, Lady Antonia Fraser, told the Guardian newspaper: "He was a great, and it was a privilege to live with him for over 33 years." | His second wife, Lady Antonia Fraser, told the Guardian newspaper: "He was a great, and it was a privilege to live with him for over 33 years." |
| He had been due to pick up an honorary degree earlier this month from the Central School of Speech and Drama in London but was forced to withdraw due to illness. | He had been due to pick up an honorary degree earlier this month from the Central School of Speech and Drama in London but was forced to withdraw due to illness. |
| Political views | |
| BBC Creative Director Alan Yentob told the BBC: "He was a unique figure in British theatre. He has dominated the theatre scene since the 1950s." | BBC Creative Director Alan Yentob told the BBC: "He was a unique figure in British theatre. He has dominated the theatre scene since the 1950s." |
| Sunday Telegraph theatre critic Tim Walker said: "This was a man who had plays with long silences, where characters did not always go anywhere - very much like real life. | Sunday Telegraph theatre critic Tim Walker said: "This was a man who had plays with long silences, where characters did not always go anywhere - very much like real life. |
| "He brought a realism to the business." | "He brought a realism to the business." |
| Harold Pinter in The Birthday Party | |
| Also an actor, poet, screenwriter and director, Pinter was known for his left-wing political views and was an outspoken critic of US and UK foreign policy. | |
| He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2005, he citation said: "in his plays he uncovers the precipice in everyday prattle and forces entry into oppression's closed rooms". | |
| He was awarded a CBE in 1966, later turned down a knighthood and became a Companion of Honour, an exclusive award in the gift of the Sovereign, in 2002. | He was awarded a CBE in 1966, later turned down a knighthood and became a Companion of Honour, an exclusive award in the gift of the Sovereign, in 2002. |
| Pinter was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in 2002 and following treatment, announced that he was on the road to recovery. | Pinter was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in 2002 and following treatment, announced that he was on the road to recovery. |
| Three years later, he announced that he had given up writing for the theatre in order to concentrate on political work. | Three years later, he announced that he had given up writing for the theatre in order to concentrate on political work. |
| The adjective "Pinteresque" is included in the Oxford English Dictionary. | The adjective "Pinteresque" is included in the Oxford English Dictionary. |